Contra Costa Times: Longshore will start bowl game for Cal

Cal Coach Jeff Tedford named Nate Longshore his starting quarterback for Saturday's Emerald Bowl against Miami, saying Longshore has "really had two of the better weeks I've seen Nate have at practice." Longshore, a fifth-year senior who lost his job at the beginning of the season after two years as the starter, will be under center at the beginning of the final game of his career.  "He's really sharp throwing the ball and has a really good command of what we're doing," Tedford said.  Sophomore Kevin Riley started the season's first four games but was inconsistent and replaced by Longshore for the next two games. Riley reclaimed the starting job and got the nod in five of the final six games of the regular season, missing one start because of a concussion. Longshore has also spent the second half of the season nursing a sore shoulder, an injury he sustained after Riley suffered the concussion against Oregon. "I think his shoulder is finally healthy," Tedford said. "He has a lot of zip on the ball, a lot of command of the offense. He's really accurate throwing it." Miami went 7-5 in the regular season and tied for third in the Atlantic Coast Conference's Coastal Division. Some of the Bears say the Hurricanes would be a contender if they played in the Pac-10.

"They definitely would be in the top half," Cal linebacker Worrell Williams said. "They're up there with the SCs and the Oregons, the Oregon States and the Cals of our conference. They can compete." Tedford agreed: "They're comparable with the more athletic teams in our conference." The Emerald Bowl pep rally will take place at Yerba Buena Gardens at 11 a.m. today. The Bears will then have a final walk-through at AT&T Park.

Miami long snapper Chris Ivory will not play in Saturday's game because he violated an unspecified team rule.